Fearing an economic downturn, Germany’s flagship airline Lufthansa is cutting flights and capacity, the company announced on Thursday.

“We are removing part of the anticipated additional capacity out of planning, in that we are reducing frequency, cutting some connections, and using smaller airplanes,” Chairman Carsten Spohr told the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.

It was crucial in these times to take make such decisions early rather than flying through the crisis with empty planes, he added.